Class of 2018 Kentucky graduate and four-time NCAA qualifier Bridgette Alexander is returning to the Wildcats as an assistant swimming and diving coach, the University announced Friday.
Alexander spent the 2020-2021 season assistant coaching for Buffalo whose women’s program won their first-ever Mid-Atlantic Conference Championship and broke seven school records at the meet. The women’s program went undefeated in their dual meet season.
In the 2019-2020 season, Alexander was a volunteer assistant coach for Kentucky. The women’s team finished 3rd at the SEC Championships that year and the men’s team placed 7th.
“Joining UK as a part of the coaching staff has been nothing short of a dream come true for me in my professional career. I have bled blue for the last eight years as an athlete, and I can’t wait to continue giving my 110% to the program that shaped the person I am today, now at a greater capacity,” Alexander said in Kentucky’s press release.
While swimming for the Wildcats, Alexander was a four-time NCAA qualifier and 11-time SEC Championship finalist. She placed 6th in the 100 back and 200 back at the 2018 SEC Championships her senior year. Alexander was named team captain twice during her collegiate career.
Her international and national-level swimming career includes winning bronze in the 200 back at the 2017 World University Games as part of the U.S. National Team. She also made the 200 back final at the 2016 U.S. Olympic Trials where she placed 8th behind Elizabeth Beisel.
She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in exercise science in 2018 and earned her master’s degree in sports leadership one year later.
“We are incredibly proud to welcome back such a distinguished alum of our program,” Kentucky head coach Lars Jorgensen said. “Bridgette has a bright future in coaching, and we are thrilled to have her join our staff.”
This announcement comes about one month after Allison Reed Leather stepped down as associate head coach after 5 years of coaching.
“These past 5 years have been nothing short of a dream come true,” Leather wrote on social media in June. “I am so thankful for the incredible experiences and opportunities I have been given while at UK.
“I’m stepping away from coaching for the time being to pursue a new opportunity with my family.
“This was one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make.
“While I am sad to say goodbye, it has been an honor to work alongside [Lars Jorgensen] and our staff, motivating and challenging such a talented group of athletes to achieve new heights and to continuously make history for our program time and time again.
“I feel so lucky to have been a part of our steady rise to a SEC Championship and am so excited to see what the future has in store for [University of Kentucky swim and dive.]”
Kentucky’s women’s program is coming off their first-ever SEC Championship title win in 2021 where the men’s team finished in 7th place under head coach Jorgenson.
The reigning SEC women’s championship team hires a coach with very little experience. The female coaching pool cannot be this shallow. This adds little to no innovation or freshness to the coaching staff. Expected better.